Chapter 15

Gabrielle’s POV

I should’ve known it was too good to last.

I thought today would be like the others. Calm, productive, maybe a little tension, but manageable. I should’ve anticipated the disaster that was about to unfold in that damn meeting room.

Everything started off fine. Well, relatively fine.

Matthew had asked me to take some notes and coordinate the meeting, which, I thought, was totally within my skill set. But as soon as I sat down, my mind went blank. I couldn’t focus, couldn’t think straight. The words on the paper were all jumbled, and I kept glancing at Matthew, who looked particularly serious today. I could almost feel his eyes drilling into me.

And then it happened.

I fumbled with the paperwork. Papers scattered across the table like confetti, and I knocked over a water bottle. It was a complete disaster. The whole meeting came to a screeching halt, and all eyes were on me.

"Gabrielle," Matthew's voice cut through the silence, sharp and unforgiving. "This is a crucial meeting. You can't afford to be careless."

The sting of his words hit me like a slap, and I froze, unable to say anything. I could feel the heat of embarrassment creeping up my neck, my cheeks burning. I tried to apologize, but my voice wavered.

Matthew's gaze turned cold, his patience wearing thin. “This is what I mean when I say you need to be more organized. You’re not a child, Gabrielle. Get it together.”

I could feel tears threatening to spill, but I held them back as best I could. The tension in the room was suffocating, and I wanted nothing more than to crawl under the table and disappear.

When the meeting finally ended, Matthew didn’t even look at me. I didn’t wait around for him to say anything else. I grabbed my things, shoved them into my bag, and fled the room.

I didn’t know where I was going, but I just needed to get away. My feet carried me to the elevator and out of the building, and before I knew it, I was standing in the park, the cool evening air hitting my face like a slap of reality.

I walked aimlessly, trying to regain my composure, but all I could think about was Matthew’s angry face and the disappointment in his voice. I’d messed up. Again. And I couldn’t escape the feeling that I wasn’t good enough.

I took a deep breath, staring at the ground, trying to keep the tears at bay. It was only then that I noticed someone standing near a bench, watching me.

“ mike?” I blinked, recognizing him immediately. It was the guy from the other day Mike, he’d introduced himself as.

“Hey, Gabrielle,” he said, his voice smooth and easy. “You okay? You look… well, like you’ve been through the ringer.”

I sighed, wiping away a stray tear that had escaped. “I just… I messed up. Big time.”

Mike, I still wasn’t sure which was his real name—stepped closer, his gaze softening. “You want to talk about it?”

I didn’t have the energy to explain the mess of my day, but somehow, it felt like he understood.

“Come on,” he said, offering me a gentle smile. “Let’s go get some ice cream. Nothing like sugar to fix a bad day.”

I hesitated for a moment, but then decided I didn’t care. I needed a distraction, and Mike seemed harmless enough. At least he wasn’t going to yell at me like Matthew had.

...****************...

We ended up at the mall. Mike, as he insisted on calling himself was surprisingly good at lifting my spirits. He made me laugh with his offhand comments about fashion and how “ridiculous” the mannequins looked. It felt nice to laugh, to not think about the disaster of the meeting or Matthew’s frustration.

We walked through the mall, stopping at a few stores. Mike bought me a ridiculous oversized hoodie that looked like something out of a horror movie, which made me laugh even harder. He seemed so different from Matthew—so carefree, so normal.

But there was something about him that felt off, too. His eyes had an intensity to them, a sharpness that didn’t match his easygoing demeanor. I couldn’t quite place it, but I pushed it out of my mind. It was probably just my nerves making me paranoid.

“What’s with the hoodie, though?” I asked, still chuckling as I tried it on.

“It’s for comfort,” mike replied, his grin widening. “Everyone needs a little comfort after a rough day.”

I nodded, still amused. “I don’t know if I can pull this off.”

“You’re doing it already,” he teased. “You look like someone who knows exactly how to wear this.”

Just as I was about to retort, a strange feeling washed over me. It was like being watched. A chill ran down my spine, and I looked around the mall, trying to shake it off. There were too many people around, too much noise. But that feeling… it wouldn’t go away.

I glanced back at Mike, who was watching me with a look that I couldn’t quite decipher. His smile seemed a little too sharp, his eyes a little too focused.

“You’re not from around here, are you?” I asked, trying to sound casual.

Mike tilted his head. “You could say that. I travel a lot.”

Something in his tone sent a shiver down my spine, but I brushed it off, telling myself I was just being paranoid.

...****************...

As the night wore on, I realized I’d lost track of time. It was already late, and the mall was starting to empty out. I should’ve gone back to the office, but part of me didn’t want to face Matthew after today’s disaster.

That’s when I noticed the sudden stillness around us. The crowd had thinned out, and the air felt heavier, colder. I turned to Mike, who was standing unusually still, his eyes locked onto something ahead of us.

Before I could ask what was going on, I heard footsteps approaching, slow and deliberate. I looked over my shoulder, my heart skipping a beat.

Matthew was there, standing at the entrance of the mall, his gaze fixed on me. His expression was unreadable, but I could feel the weight of his anger even from across the room.

“Gabrielle,” he said, his voice sharp, “I’ve been looking for you.”

I froze, caught between Matthew and Mike, unsure of what to do next. The tension in the air was thick enough to cut with a knife.

But I had no idea that  Mike, was far more dangerous than I could ever imagine. And Matthew, despite his anger, was about to face the threat I had no clue was lurking right in front of me.

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